Saturday, February 23, 2013

I don't know what got me into a tizzy the other day about making my own version of homemade vegan Irish Cream-style liqueur-- maybe someone reminded me about St. Patrick's Day coming up and, being married to a Grogan, it stirred up my creative juices. Whatever got into me, I was on a roll. (Just for the record, tasting was in VERY small amounts!)I don't drink much, but I've always enjoyed a little Bailey's when it was offered, and I actually found a bottle in the back of a kitchen cupboard (left behind by a guest at Christmas) with a tiny bit left in it which I could use judiciously to judge the taste of my own concoction.I wanted my recipe to be simple to make, with easily-available ingredients; to NOT involve a can of full-fat coconut milk (too much fat, and saturated fat, for my taste, plus I didn't want a coconut flavor); to be as similar as possible in texture and flavor to Bailey's; and to not separate on standing. I decided to use So Delicious Original Coconut Creamer (which is deliciously creamy without tasting coconut-y, but only 10 calories a tablespoon) as the base for my mixture. NOTE: I don't know the non-dairy creams that are available worldwide, but whatever product you use instead of the So Delicious creamer/cream alternative should have only about 10 calories per tablespoon in order to match the nutritional stats of this recipe. You could use your favorite soy creamer or, if you don't mind more fat, use a homemade cashew creamer (but don't make it too thick-- think coffee creamer consistency), but add the cashews that are in the recipe as well.My first batch tasted very good, but I added far too much vegetable gum in an attempt to make it a little creamier, which resulted in a kind of pudding-like gloppy mixture (I'll use it in desserts). My second batch is a winner, I think. I blended raw cashews (softened in the hot espresso) with the rest of the ingredients for just the right amount of creaminess, and this time I was very sparing with the guar gum (you can use xanthan instead, if you like), which accomplished what I was hoping it would-- keeping the mixture from separating without thickening it too much.I hope you will enjoy making and imbibing this treat for your St. Patrick's Day.

Soak the chopped cashews in the hot
espresso while you assemble the other ingredients.

Place the creamer, whiskey, sugar,
chocolate sauce, vanilla and almond extracts, guar gum and salt in a blender.
Add the cashews and coffee. Cover and blend at high speed until the liquid is absolutely
smooth and not grainy at all when rubbed between your fingers. Strain the
mixture through a fine sieve, bottle and refrigerate.

BRYANNA'S
RICH-TASTING NO-FAT CHOCOLATE SAUCE (GF and can be Soy-free)

Servings:
8 (2 tablespoons per serving)

Yield:
1 cup

This also makes a good icing or filling
when cold.

2/3 cup non-dairy milk

2/3 cup brown sugar or granulated organic unbleached sugar

1/3 cup unsweetened organic fair trade cocoa powder

4 tsp organic cornstarch

1 tsp pure vanilla extract

In blender mix the first 4 ingredients until
smooth.

Stir the mixture constantly over medium
heat in a small saucepan until thickened and bubbly. Cook and stir for 2 minutes
more. (Or cook in the microwave at 100% power in a microwave-safe bowl or
pitcher for 1 minute; whisk and microwave 1 minute more; whisk.) Stir in the
vanilla.

Serve warm or cold. Refrigerate in a
covered jar for storage. Use cold or reheat in the microwave at low power, or
in a double boiler over simmering water on the stovetop.

7 comments:

narf7
said...

What a gorgeous concoction Bryanna! We don't actually have ANY non dairy creamers here unless you count the powdered "Coffeemate" that I would rather suck cardboard than consume. I guess I might have to mess about with finding a recipe online to approximate the non dairy creamer? I get another chance to learn something new :). Cheers for a lovely recipe, for reminding me that it is St Patricks Day and for constantly striving to make the world a better place for we vegans :)

Thanks, narf7! Here are a few suggestions: Idea #1) if you can get a powdered soy milk or rice milk (a good tasting one such as Better Than Milk), perhaps online, you could make it double strength and use that as the creamer.

idea #2) Here is a homemade creamer recipe that I have been "playing with" for some time, but you need some soy or rice protein powder to make it. they are available online.

Idea #3) This will be higher in fat and calories, but not high in saturated fat like coconut milk, but a homemade nut cream would work. This is from my book "World Vegan Feast":NUT CREAM (makes 1/2 cup + 2 tablespoons):

Nut “Buttermilk”: Curdle the nut milk or cream with a bit of lemon juice to use instead of buttermilk in cooking and baking.TIPS:You can use cashew or Brazil Nut Cream and milk "as is". You might prefer to strain the almond or hazelnut (filbert) cream or milk through fine cheesecloth (squeeze every last drop out and use the resulting pulp in granola or as a facial scrub).

Keep the liquids in tightly sealed jars in the refrigerator. Raw nut milks and crèmes don’t last long and should be made fresh, in small quantities, every 2 to 3 days if you use them regularly.

MoreTips: #1) Nut milk and cream will separate in the refrigerator-- just shake the jar before use. #2) Homemade nut milks and crèmes are delicious on desserts, cereal and fruit and in beverages. #3) For cooking, omit the syrup and salt.

How to Skin Raw Hazelnuts (or Filberts), Brazil Nuts and Almonds #1) For hazelnuts (and filberts) and Brazil nuts, bring 2 cups water to boil with 3 tablespoons baking soda. Add the nuts and blanch for 3 to 4 minutes. Drain and rinse the nuts in a colander under cold running water-- the skins will slide off.

#2) For almonds, place them in boiling water for about a minute, then drain them in a colander and plunge them into cold water. Squeeze each almond between your thumb and forefinger and the almond will pop out of the skin (be careful or they will shoot across the room!).

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